The Fight for Freedom (Book One in the EDSOR Military Academy Trilogy)

Chapter 19- Intensive Medication

After five shots, I look at my body filled with bloody cuts of her scalpel and find that my body was intact.

I was stunned to see Valerie’s lab apron stained with oozing blood as she looked at me with grief-stricken eyes and plummeted on the hard marble floor. Her body was pierced by bullets. I then saw a quivering girl clutching my machine gun, sweating and moving toward me. She looked horrified when she saw my cut body bound by heavy metal chains.

“President, are you alright?”, she asked, concerned as she tugged on the metal chains.

I was still recovering from the shock of being shot that I couldn’t say anything, not even a word of gratitude. She saluted to me.

“Your name, valiant warrior”, I said in a demanding voice. She stared blankly at the lifeless body of Valerie. I also saw the body of that burly guy on the ground. She was clutching the gun tightly that her hands were turning white.

“H-Hershel, sister of Sir Trevor”, she stammered.

I smiled and bowed at her. “Thank you Hershel. I’d be grateful if you can get me out of these chains”

Hershel took out a silver dagger from her pocket belt and slashed the chains. I slumped down on the ground as soon as my body limped. She seemed horrified at the sight of my bloody clothes”

“Take me to the nearest hospital”

She nodded quickly like a robot. “Right away mam”

“Call me Jesse” I said, annoyed at the formality of her voice. Despite her meek nature, I saw fierce courage still blazing in her eyes as she strongly gripped my arm and kicked the door that barred people from passing through it.

“How did you get here?”, I ask, curious and amused at her daring strength.

“The War Council needed you for an important decision regarding the architecture of the fortress but you were nowhere to be found”

Ah! Yes, I remember! Hershel was Lexine’s best friend and was a budding athlete too. She loved running like her friend. “So the War Council dispatched you then to look for me?”, I asked, cupping my hands to my solar plexus. I think I was losing my life force. “Could you hurry? I am losing oxygen by the way”

She ran so fast that it came to a point she was already dragging me along the way. I looked back with horror when I realized I was leaving a trail of blood drops in my path.

“Don’ worry Jesse. Hold out for a minute. We’re heading to the Xavier clinic where facilities are better”

We passed by the ICA hospital. “Hershel! Stop here!”

She halted so abruptly that I felt my arm crack as she pulled it. “Just bring me here”, I said weakly as I clutched the handle of the door. Hershel pulled out a microphone from her pocket and spoke in it before I could stop her.

“Mission Number 459 completed. President Jesse Hope successfully located. All War Council members, please proceed to the ICA clinic”

“You had to announce that?”, I raised my voice. “Orders from Thomas”

“Thomas?”, I turned livid. “What’s he doing in my position, thinking he can order you around?”

Hershel giggled. “The first second, you’re turning white and after you hear his name, you really are turning red. He was so concerned about you that he brought the issue up to the War Council. He’s a fine boy”

“That nasty stalker always interferes with my work! How dare he?”, I thought aloud.

Hershel gave me a smug face as seven nurses carried my body to a clean white hospital bed. As I was plopped on the comfortable bed, I sighed and smiled as they started applying herbal salve on my wounds and wrapping them in bandages.

I got the shock of my life when the door slammed against the wall with a loud thud. I saw Gerard’s harassed and red face when he saw me. “My god! Jesse, are you alright?”, he screamed as he put his hands to his hair styled with hair gel. He looked like Usui Takumi.

I noticed that my garments were taken off and a towel was wrapped around my body from my shoulders to my legs. Oh gosh! I don’t want to be seen like this!

I heard the familiar creaking of a wheelchair. “Jesse, where did you go? Why is your body mangled?”

“I was stabbed”, I said, as a matter-of-factly.

Lexine came next. “Hershel! I never knew you’d be the savior! How’s it going?”

Hershel frowned at her. “I think you’d better divert your attention to Jesse who had almost been shot”

One of the nurses gave us quite a scare. She hollered to her mates. “Deep wounds on her leg. Her solar plexus is still bleeding! Hand me the gauze and painkillers!”

Lexine gasped as she placed her hands to her mouth. “Your solar…plexus? Jesse, why did you go to your dorm alone?”, she frantically asked, squeezing my hand.

Before I could say anything, Marco and Thomas burst inside at the same time. They glared at each other and pushed their way in.

Thomas ran to me as everyone gave way to him. Hot tears were flowing from my eyes as I saw him. “Jesse, I never should’ve left you”

Marco was standing in the corner beside the dentist room just staring at both of us. He quietly slipped away when I called him. “Marco, come back here”

He abruptly stopped and stared blankly at me. “Hope you’re feeling better”, he said.

“Well I am not”, I answered back.

“I have Math training”, he told me in a gloomy voice.

“Good afternoon, folks! I am Carmina from RadioWarZone News Flash!”, a weird girl announced beside me. “We have just found our president who has gone through a lot of cuts and wounds by a scalpel. Jesse Hope, where were you taken hostage?”

“She needs to rest!”, Thomas yelled as Carmina frowned at him. She was holding a microphone and shoved it to me.

“I was taken to the basement of the DTASC..I was stabbed several times with a scalpel and….”. I felt my system going down and I fainted.